PaymentFacilitator’s News Roundup is a curated mix of the past week’s news and articles from around the web, including company announcements, global payments news, and other coverage and analysis of topics relevant to payment facilitators.

Big Brands Doing Big Things

Google Pay under construction for data localization compliance. The global brand said it is currently working with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), as well as local bank partners and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), to ensure a safe and smooth transition to complying with data localization requirements. The company is making inroads in India’s payments market; their number of active users grew significantly from 22 million to 67 million (year-over-year) in September of this year. From Financial Express.

Compelling Conversations

Google Pay’s Sajith Sivanandan talks success through scale. In an effort to simplify payments in one of the world’s most dynamic ecosystems, Google Pay is certainly owning their share of India’s fintech market. So what’s the secret to their success? According to Sivanandan, managing director and business head for Google Pay and Next Billion Users initiatives at Google India, it all comes down to the user experience. From YourStory.

Volume Vs. Value

UPI hits another record high in transaction volume. After crossing the 1 billion threshold for transaction volume in October, India’s United Payments Interface (UPI) hit a new high of 1.22 billion in November. The growing platform saw a 19.4% increase (possibly driven by holiday sales) between September and October alone. From YourStory.

Digital Download

Digital climbs to 20% of total transaction value in Philippine marketplace. Jumping from only 8% in 2013 to an impressive 20% in 2018, the value of e-payments has seen a substantial uptick over the past several years. Due largely to a collaboration of efforts from both the government and private sectors to drive digital in the marketplace, usage rates have also increased from 1% in 2013 to 10% in 2018. From Philippine News Agency.